Pease Air National Guard Base is a New Hampshire Air National Guard base located at Portsmouth International Airport at Pease in New Hampshire. It occupies a portion of what was once Pease Air Force Base, a former Strategic Air Command facility with a base-related population of 10,000 and which was home to the 509th Bomb Wing (509 BW) flying the General Dynamics FB-111A. Pease AFB was closed pursuant to 1991 Base Realignment and Closure Commission action, with the 509 BW transferring to Whiteman AFB, Missouri. In 1983, investigations had shown soil and water contamination with degreasers and JP-4 jet fuel, and in 1990 the base was put on the National Priorities List of superfund sites. As of 2015, after 25 years of the Pease Development Authority's work, Pease International Tradeport has 275 businesses employing close to 10,000 civilian workers.Pease continues to be home to the New Hampshire Air National Guard's 157th Air Refueling Wing (157 ARW), an Air Mobility Command gained Air National Guard unit currently flying the KC-135R Stratotanker air refueling aircraft, and since 2009 the 64th Air Refueling Squadron, an active duty United States Air Force "associate" unit to the 157th. The 157 ARW was a former tenant activity at Pease AFB and remained at the installation following the BRAC-directed closure of its regular Air Force activities. As of 2011, the base population is 380 full-time military personnel, with a monthly surge of up to 950 when part-time military personnel are included.
